Michigan advances to National Championships with record tie Michigan goes 2-2 against Maryland, Northwestern Baserunning costs Michigan outs and runs Standing on the edge of the floor before her routine, junior Natalie Wojcik watched as her teammate’s score came in at a 9.950, securing the win for Michigan and advancing it to the NCAA Gymnastics Championships. However, Wojcik still saluted the judges, stepped out on the floor and performed a strong routine that allowed the No. 4 Wolverines (20-2) to tie their program record team score at the NCAA Regionals over the weekend. The Wolverines showed some nerves on the first day of competition in the Regional Semifinals, but the team ultimately placed first and advanced. Michigan’s biggest errors in its first day of competition came on beam, the team’s first event of the day. None of the gymnasts fell off the beam, but there were many large balance checks that left the team with an uncharacteristically low score of 48.925 to start the meet. Instead of letting its first rotation set the tone for the rest of the meet though, the Wolverines bounced back in the rest of the events, ending the meet in first place with a 197.650 and advancing to the Regional Finals. No. 13 UCLA also qualified for the next day of competition, trailing Michigan by 0.600 points with a team score of 197.050. On Saturday, the Wolverines needed to place in the top two out of the four teams in their Regional Finals to qualify for the National Championships. Facing No. 5 University of California, Berkeley, the Bruins and Ohio State, Michigan excelled on the competition floor yet again, placing first to secure its National Championship spot. “I feel like people are paying attention to us and hopefully giving us the credit we deserve for being … in contention for winning that national championship,” Michigan coach Bev Plocki said. “It’s not a fluke when you (score over 198) three times in the same year, so I hope people are paying attention to the University of Michigan.” The Wolverines began the day with a strong vault rotation, one of the team’s best events, to have an immediate lead in the meet. Junior Abby Heiskell started with a low score, but the rest of her team made up for it, led by two 9.950 vaults from senior Sierra Brooks and freshman Naomi Morrison. Using the energy from the first rotation, the Wolverines moved to bars, where they broke a program record score with their performance. “Abby Heiskell put us on a great note, hitting her first routine,” Brooks said. “It was beautiful, the dismount dropped right in, and right when that happens we just get extremely excited, and we’re not worried about making little mistakes that usually get to us.” Heiskell started the rotation with a 9.950, which was matched by sophomore Gabby Wilson and Brooks. Wojcik anchored the rotation with a stuck landing on her dismount, winning the event title with a 9.975. The high scoring performances kept Michigan in the lead with second place Golden Bears trailing by 0.375 points. Despite the Wolverine’s beam performance in the previous day’s competition, the team was able to stay consistent. Brooks posted a huge 9.950 score, and Heiskell finished out the rotation with a solid 9.900 to keep the team’s lead going into its last rotation on the floor. The Wolverines kept their momentum on floor, with four gymnasts earning scores of 9.900, and Wilson topping the rotation with a 9.950. Wojcik finished the rotation with a 9.900, even though the team had already won the meet before her performance even began. “It’s great to have five solid routines before going into that anchor spot, because it definitely takes some of that pressure off,” Wojcik said. “You know that everyone else has done their job, and it sets you up to really just do your best and be carefree but also be able to hit and add another solid routine to the mix.” Although Wojcik’s stellar routine wasn’t necessary in securing Michigan’s win, it pushed the team to tie its program record and give the Wolverines necessary confidence as they move into the National Championships. Michigan also posted the second highest score of any team in the country this weekend, only falling short to No. 1 Oklahoma. “We are just hoping to continue building on this meet and have more meets like this at Nationals,” Wojcik said. “We’re in contention for a national title, and we know we’re capable of doing that, so we’re going to use our energy to get our goal accomplished.” Brandon Lawrence had waited two years for his first college at-bat, and the freshman infielder got it in the top of the ninth inning against Maryland on Monday night. With his family in the stands, he homered to deep right field. It’s a moment Michigan coach Erik Bakich thinks Lawrence will never forget, but one of few things the rest of the Wolverines will remember — at least positively. The solo home run pulled the No. 25 Michigan baseball team (13-6 Big Ten) back within 10 runs of the Terrapins, capping off a 17-7 loss and a 2-2 weekend series split against Maryland (9-10 Big Ten) and Northwestern (10-8). Monday’s loss was an outlier compared to the first three games of the weekend, when Michigan rode its biggest strengths — pitching, defense and timely hitting, according to Bakich — to two wins. Redshirt sophomore left-hander Steven Hajjar earned another quality start on Friday night, allowing only two runs and three hits in 6.2 innings, but a strong start by the Wildcats’ Tyler Uberstine kept the score tied at two before the seventh- inning stretch. Redshirt junior outfielder Danny Zimmerman led off the bottom of the seventh with a pinch-hit walk, and fifth-year catcher Christian Molfetta singled. Fifth-year transfer catcher Griffin Mazur topped off the rally with a first-pitch home run, giving the Wolverines a three-run lead they’d hold. Redshirt junior left-hander Ben Dragani took the ball for the second game against Northwestern, and like the other starters who succeeded Hajjar this weekend, Dragani couldn’t record even close to a quality start. His four innings and three runs did keep Michigan within shouting distance of the Wildcats, but outs on the basepaths cut rallies in the first and seventh innings short. Down 4-1 in the ninth, the Wolverines quickly loaded the bases on a walk and a pair of singles. But not even the red-hot redshirt sophomore outfielder Jordon Rogers or Zimmerman, who was summoned to pinch-hit once again, could clear the table. “We had put a good amount of quality at-bats together and just made some hard outs,” Zimmerman said. “We started that inning by loading the bases. We can’t wait around to the ninth inning. We can’t always win in the ninth; we’ve got to do it earlier.” Michigan didn’t heed that advice in the second game of Sunday’s doubleheader. Sophomore right- hander Cameron Weston went four innings and allowed four runs, but a grand slam by sophomore catcher Jimmy Obertop neutralized Maryland’s early offensive damage. Michigan scratched out a run on a squeeze play in the seventh inning to take a 5-4 lead. “The wind was blowing in, and we felt good about (fifth-year transfer shortstop) Benjamin Sems getting a squeeze down,” Bakich said. “He executed it perfectly. There have been a couple of times when we’ve left runners on base. It was a tie game, and we usually like to play for the big inning, but this particular case of where we were in the game and the time of the game and how the game was going, it just seemed like trying to play for a run was the way to go.” The Terrapins responded with a game-tying single in their half of the seventh, and with the game still knotted at five in the ninth, Bakich called on Zimmerman to pinch-hit once again. Although he faced mid to upper-90s velocity from Maryland reliever David Falco, Zimmerman was looking to hit a fastball. He did just that, belting a solo home run that gave Michigan a 6-5 lead that held. Then came Monday’s game, during which Maryland turned the basepaths into a carousel for 3.5 hours. Senior right-hander Blake Beers allowed four runs in 3.1 innings, and the trail of relievers that followed him let in 13 additional runs. “Our bullpen has been really good for the first 18 games of the year, so I’m not going to put too much stock into what happened today,” Bakich said. “We just couldn’t stop the hot-hitting Maryland team today; they were on fire.” Pitching and defensive struggles eliminated Michigan well before the final pitch had been thrown. In light of that, Bakich emptied the bench and gave Brandon Lawrence the opportunity to give the team a silver lining. Graduate transfer infielder Benjamin Sems laid down the bunt to perfection in the seventh inning of Sunday’s game against Maryland, sending the ball rolling past the pitcher to the third baseman. Sems was so close to first base by the time the ball had been collected that the Maryland third baseman didn’t even bother with a throw. Instead, he turned to see sophomore outfielder Clark Elliott sprinting around third base in an attempt to score two runs on the squeeze play. Since Sems was already safe at first base, the third baseman calmly turned and ran at Elliott, who was caught in a rundown and tagged out. The next batter, sophomore outfielder Tito Flores, hit a fly ball that would have been a sacrifice fly and would likely have scored Elliott if the Wolverines had just played it safe. This sort of baserunning mistake was a recurring issue throughout the weekend series against the Terrapins and Northwestern, both of which Michigan split, as extremely aggressive baserunning turned into costly outs that limited runs. “We made a couple of mistakes,” Michigan coach Erik Bakich said. “Just getting out on the bases, things come up that just need to be corrected, whether it be shortening a lead or extending a lead or getting a better jump.” The Wolverines have run into several other outs in recent games, too. Redshirt sophomore outfielder Jordon Rogers was picked off of first base after getting a very aggressive lead during the loss to Northwestern on Sunday. He took several skips away from the base to disrupt the Wildcat left-hander staring him down from the mound but was made to pay for it when the pitcher threw over to first base. Rogers also ran into another out in a later game against Maryland on Monday when he was thrown out trying to steal third. “There’s a lot that goes into base running, and we spend an extraordinary amount of time on it,” Bakich said. “It’s certainly created a lot of scoring opportunities for us over the years so it’s something we take a lot of pride in and try to use it and deploy it to our advantage. Some of the most successful teams we’ve had have been guys that have had that combination of speed and power throughout the lineup. Where there’s multiple ways to score, those seem to be the best offenses.” Later in Sunday’s loss against Northwestern, Flores hesitated for a moment to advance on a pitch in the dirt, but decided to break for second base and was gunned down by the Wildcat catcher. As if on cue, the batter at the plate, redshirt junior outfielder Danny Zimmerman, smoked a double off the wall that likely would’ve scored Flores from first base had he not run into an out. Elliott also was thrown out trying to score on a ground ball to shortstop in the Wolverines’ first game against Maryland. Elliott’s hesitation, like Flores’s, was costly as he waited a split second before aggressively trying to score on a softly-hit ground ball. He was caught in a rundown coming home and eventually tagged out. “I think it was just unlucky,” sophomore catcher Jimmy Obertop said. “We’re always trying to be aggressive, it’s better to be in an aggressive state than a passive one.” Bakich’s teams are known for being aggressive on the bases, and they have forced other teams into many errors this season. The mistakes this weekend may have cost the team several runs, but Bakich is not worried about his team’s aggressiveness on the bases in the long term: “We want to be aggressive up to a calculated risk,” Bakich said. “The thing that we talked about is trying to be about 50% successful in stealing bases. If we feel like we can steal the base with 80% success, then it’s worth taking the risk.” SAMI RUUD Daily Sports Writer JACK WHITTEN Daily Sports Writer STEEL HURLEY Daily Sports Writer ALLISON ENGKVIST/Daily Michigan advanced to the National Championships with a team score that tied the program record this weekend. The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com Sports 16 — Wednesday, April 7, 2021 LUKE HALES/Daily Sophomore Clark Elliott’s baserunning error was one of many for Michigan during the start of this season. Late defensive lapses cost Michigan against Wisconsin In the 83rd minute, Wisconsin midfielder Murat Calkap placed the ball next to the corner flag, ready to deliver the corner kick. With a short run up and a swing of the leg, the midfielder sent a looping cross into the middle of the goal box, linking up with the powerful strike on the forehead of Badger forward Henri Tophoven. With ample force, the ball went flying past the Wolverines’ sophomore goalkeeper, Owen Finnerty. The corner served as the winning goal for Wisconsin (2-7-1 Big Ten), as they upset No. 11 Michigan (5-3-1 Big Ten) by a score of 3-2. “When we got to the first (crosses) we didn’t clear them well, so that’s something we do habitually,” Michigan coach Chaka Daley said. “I just think we got some unlucky bounces today. That’s not something we’ve ever really (dealt with). We haven’t conceded a set piece goal all year.” Spectators were not deprived of exciting scoring opportunities during the first twenty minutes of the game. In the third minute, a deflected corner kick left a loose ball in the box for Wisconsin defender Moritz Kappelsberger. The defender put a close-ranged shot on net, but Finnerty dropped to a knee to stop the shot. Six minutes later, the Wolverines got a chance of their own, as sophomore midfielder Iñaki Rodriguez sent a header hurtling into the net, but Wisconsin goalkeeper Carter Abbott made the save with ease. In the 17th minute, Badgers forward Noah Melick had an excellent opportunity to score on a breakaway, but Finnerty rushed off his line to sweep up the ball. Three minutes later, a foul in the Wisconsin penalty box sent senior midfielder Marc Ybarra to the penalty spot. He sent Abbott diving in the wrong direction and netted the penalty kick, giving Michigan an early 1-0 lead. The next ten minutes were filled with offensive opportunities for the Wolverines, but they weren’t able to convert. Wisconsin eventually scored an equalizer in the 39th minute, as Badger defender Zach Klancnik zipped the ball into the corner of the goal. The score remained at 1-1 to conclude the first half. In the 60th minute, junior forward Derick Broche picked up the ball at the midfield line and carried the ball up the right side of the pitch with pace, trailed by a chasing Wisconsin defender. Broche displayed a series of high stepovers to swerve past one defender and used a heavy left-footed touch to gain space from a second. In a close-ranged one-on-one situation, Broche chipped the ball over the right shoulder of Abbott, concluding his brilliant solo run with clinical finesse. The Wolverines would carry their one goal lead up until the 74th minute, when Finnerty’s attempted corner kick clearance was unsuccessful, leaving the ball sitting in front of the net, providing an easy rebound finish for Melick. Tophoven’s 83rd-minute header put the Badgers up 3-2, and the score concluded that way. All three of the Wisconsin goals came off of set- piece long passes. The final two were especially heartbreaking for Michigan, as the players watched their lead slip into a deficit during the final 15 minutes of play. “To be hard done by deflections is difficult, but we also didn’t do enough to extend that lead or defend a little bit better on the first balls,” Daley said. “All of those (goals) are off of second balls and deflections. It was nothing creative or to carve us apart or to outplay us.” HAYDEN F. GRIJNSZTEIN Daily Sports Writer LUKE HALES/Daily In an April men’s soccer game against Wisconsin, the Wolverines were not able to convert on offensive opportunities, leading to an upset.